Raindrops
by Daisuki.Bear
Summary: A bus, an umbrella, and the raindrops. 'I love rainy days. That is when we first met.' She would always smile and say. He would never admit that she was the sunshine he had found in the pouring rain. NXM, two-shot.
1. Chapter 1

This is what happens when I get sidetracked with my main story. Hope you like this not-so-short two-shot about our favourite couple! : ) I quite like short stories because they are more light-hearted and also fun :3

I do not own Gakuen Alice.

(Check out my main story, Last Hope Remaining! Just filter it through by selecting 'Adventure' as one of the genre options and you'll find it real quick hehe. I promise I am working on it! Slowly but surely it would come…)

* * *

When the two first encountered, it was an unusually stormy day. The sky was a grey swirl of ominous clouds with a touch of lightning. The way the rain crashed on the roof of the bus and slashed at the windows reduced all visibility. Natsume Hyuuga cursed, thinking about the mess awaiting him at home-he hadn't kept the laundry nor closed the windows-he was simply dreading the moment that he had to hop off the bus.

Natsume was just a typical guy living in a quiet neighbourhood, apart from the above average looks he had. He had been living in the same neighbourhood all this life, and nothing interesting ever happened. Well, if you count out the time when he was 12 and his parents quarrelled for god-knows-how-many times, until finally, his mother snapped, packed up her bags, and left. The Hyuuga household thus became the gossip centre of the neighbourhood for a while, and everybody had somehow gotten word of his family situation. Not that he really cared, anyway. 6 good, long years had passed, and his father was hardly at home. Even if he was, he was drunk and slumped on the sofa. He had never heard from his mother again.

If you had to describe Natsume with three words, it would be cold, indifferent and independent.

The bus made a deep swerve to the right. _1 more stop_, he noted to himself. That was when he first took note of a figure, sitting two seats in front of him. A brunette. She was leaning against the window and staring out into the waterfall that unleashed outside.

Natsume knew that his stop was one of the last one the bus's route. Usually, by the time his stop approaches, there would only be him left in the bus. Lots of space and quiet time to himself. But not today. A brunette had to just be there to block his vision, he thought. Under the lighting of the bus though, he could not help but take note that her hair was incredibly shiny and smooth. Those locks of hair, though half blocked by the seats, were a delicious caramel colour and its shine-he could not tear his eyes off of it.

When the bus finally screeched into a stop and he saw the brunette in front of him stand up abruptly, Natsume snapped back into reality. He quickly scrambled to his feet upon realising that it was his stop as well, and stumbled off the bus in a hurry.

He grumbled under his breath as he took a leap towards the bus-stop. The shelter provided there was so minimal he could still feel the rain splashing and soaking into his shoes. Groaning, he dug into his bag for his foldable umbrella. As he struggled to pull it open, he suddenly remembered something and quickly turned around.

She was standing there, watching the raindrops fall down the sky as the downpour dragged on and drowned out everything else. She was wearing a simple white spaghetti-strapped dress, and across her shoulder slung a small bag. Her frail looking arms slowly reached out into the distance and Natsume watched as the rain danced on her arm and slid into her palms, her hands.

_Damn_, he thought. It could not be she did not have an umbrella, right? Natsume shrugged as he tore his eyes and turned away. She was just a stranger, she was not part of his responsibility or anything. And that was why Natsume could not understand why he had turned back and walked up to her. He knew that his umbrella would have stood no chance in the storm, and needless to say, for two people it would not provide much cover. But something about the girl made him turn back for her. It is usually rare for Natsume to initiate any form of conversation, especially with people he didn't know.

But ah, his legs were already walking towards her...

"Hey." His mouth moved on its own too!

The girl turned, a bit startled at his sudden interruption, but said nothing.

"You can have this if you don't have one." He said and shoved his unbrella forcefully into her hands. And within this 10 seconds, he decided it was the end of his compassion and weird loss of _self control_, so he turned to stalk off nonchalantly. He was just a few steps away from crossing the shelter of the bus stop before he felt an arm grab him.

"Thank you for your offer, but i don't want you to get wet. Please take it back and use it on yourself instead."

Natsume grunted. The only time he decided to be nice was rejected.

"Then what about you?" He stared at the umbrella in her hands.

"I'm okay. I can just wait for the rain here. I don't live very far away from here." The girl smiled, nudging him again with the umbrella, signalling him to take it.

_But it was the first time he had seen her since he started living here. _

"Wait for this rain? Are you kidding me? It will probably last till the night."

"But you will be wet, and i don't like that." The girl pouted, and Natsume couldn't help but realise _how cute she looked..._

"Look, can you just take it?" He sighed, trying not to look at her.

"No! Unless you stay dry too."

And that is how Natsume came to walk her home, both sharing the umbrella. The umbrella obviously stood no chance against the storm, but since she had insisted, Natsume could only tilt his umbrella to her side more. She clutched onto one of his arm tightly as they walked, and they were pressed so close together that her hair kept sweeping into his face, yet when it left he couldn't help but notice to faint lingering scent of strawberries...

It turns out that she was staying just 2 streets away from where he lived. Their eyes met for a while as they stopped in front of her porch and Natsume tried to wipe away the droplets of rain still clinging onto his hair. Luckily, she was somehow quite dry. Natsume watched as her eyebrows twisted into a frown.

"Wait here," She added before kicking off her own shoes and scrambling into her house. A minute later, she rushed back with a towel in one hand. With a tiptoe, she wrapped his head in the towel, ruffling it in the process.

"Thanks for the umbrella," she beamed. "I think you should stay for a while. The rain's still heavy..."

"It's okay."

Natsume merely gave a shrug before tugging off the towel and turning to leave for his own house. He knew at the back of his mind though, that the girl had waved to him even as he stalked off and that he was going to probably going to take a detour from his usual route home for a while. He clutched onto the towel in his hands as he quickened his pace away from where she stood, though taking a piece of her with him. Even in the rain, the towel, though small, gave him mysterious warmth, much like his umbrella.

* * *

The second time they met, was on the bus as well. Coincidentally, it was drizzling that day as well, like a situation created by God for them to meet. He had seen her coming up the bus, even if he pretended to be interested in the scenery he had passed by for years. This time though, she slid into the seat beside him.

"We meet again! On another rainy day! Thanks for that time," She cheerily smacked him on the back. Natsume grunted to acknowledge her presence. He was secretly glad he had met her again.

"Where are you going?" She asked.

"Home."

"From?"

"School."

"I see. I'm going home too! It's not really my house though..."

Natsume was confused. "Why?"

Her face softened as she turned her gaze ahead of her. "I'm living with a friend of my parents. My parents sent me here because it's a nearer place to the hosp- city..." Her voice fell a little, and Natsume knew that somehow, that was not the whole story.

"Where were you?" He brought up.

"Just the…library. I go there to read often, and to look for stuff. Since I don't go to school and all."

"Why not?"

"I never get to hang around long enough." She replied with a sad smile.

"I wish I could get away from it," Natsume shrugged, to which the girl beside him chuckled. She sounded like a tingling bell, her eyes straight ahead, not knowing that he was staring at her from the corner of his eyes. The next thing he knew, she pulled him up with her, Natsume jumped and scrambled after her off the bus.

"I actually remembered my umbrella this time," Natsume watched as she sheepishly pulled one out of her handbag. "Come around and play sometime, won't you? My parents' friend's quite busy, she's usually not around and I get lonely." She grinned at him before turning to take her leave.

"You haven't told me your name." He called out.

She whipped around. "It's Mikan Sakura! Nice to meet you, Natsume!" Mikan beamed and gave him a wave. It did not matter how she knew his name, nor the fact that she just yelled that from across the road and Natsume could see a few curious kids looking out the window. It did not matter that the drizzle was still going on-inside him, he felt as if the Sun had just risen after a long, bitter Winter. He stood, entranced, until her figure disappeared down the lane and round the corner.

* * *

They had met often after that. At least 3 times a week, the duo would find themselves beside each other on the bus, in a corner, reciting their own stories. Natsume didn't know when, but he started saving a seat for her, and craning his head out of the window to check if she was there. There was once that Natsume had gotten off from school early, but he sat at the school bus stop until it was the usual time-in order to see her smile again. Mikan Sakura was always smiling, no matter what grouchy expression Natsume wore. Their bus trips may not have been long, and especially with such an incessant voice that went on and on, Natsume realised that sometimes, he had wished for the rides to last forever. On days when she did not appear, Natsume would sink back into his seat and count the stops till home. It was not that they had a heated discussion with each other on the way home, but just her scent, her eyes, that melodious laughter- it made this rainy season warm and less draggy. On some days when Mikan would look pretty exhausted, the two would just sit in silence, comfortable just with each other's presence-like today, for example.

Natsume would refrain from asking her anything when she was not in the mood for talking. He respected her privacy. He kept himself occupied by looking out the window. It was drizzling _again_. Suddenly, he felt something fall onto his shoulders. Startled, he turned to find Mikan sleeping on his shoulders, her hair falling into her face and tickling his neck. The familiar waft of berries and honey invaded his senses, and all of a sudden, all he saw was her. He shifted his body closer to her and tucked one strand of hair behind her ear. For the rest of the journey, he found himself just running his hands through her hazel locks while she snuggled into him.

Since a few weeks ago, they had started going over to each other's houses. Usually it was Mikan's place, because Natsume didn't know when his father would burst through the front door and start yelling the house down in his drunken state. They would together on the couch, occasionally with a mug of hot cocoa between them, and pick a weekend movie. Mikan had stated that her parent's friend was quite the movie fan-so they discovered a large stash of movies dating as far back as decades ago- at their disposal.

It was Natsume's turn that week, and he popped the CD in with a smirk on his face.

"I don't like that smirk on your face," Mikan eyed him as he took his place beside her on the couch. "Please tell me you didn't pick something stupid or childish," she groaned.

"It'll be good, trust me and just watch."

So Mikan sat back, with her arms crossed, ready to watch what Natsume had picked to be so confident-until she yelped as the music boomed through the speakers and the screen screamed "Insidious" in blood red letters.

"This isn't good at all!" She shrieked and reached for a pillow. Natsume merely smirked and jeered at her. "You said I got to pick."

She yelped again and buried her face deep into the small pillow in her hands. "It hasn't even started," Mikan didn't even need to see Natsume's face to know that he was enjoying this. She could feel him shifting closer to her. He probably planned it all along.

She kept her eyes shut throughout most of the movie, choosing to bury her face into the pillow instead, shrinking away from the screen as she watched the flashes of scenes go by. Natsume had slipped an arm around her, she could feel his muscular arms around her. She told herself it was ending soon, that she just had a little more to go through. The movie had grown silent suddenly, and she looked up from her pillow-at the wrong moment. The face of the ghosts-or whatever, magnified on the screen and all hell broke loose. She pounced into Natsume's chest and screamed, while Natsume hurriedly reached for the pause button. He could feel her hands clawing at her shirt-tight and trembling, and he looked down and noticed the tears in her eyes.

He felt guilty for reducing her to tears, but as he felt the closeness of their bodies, her clutching onto him like her life had depended on him-he could not but help feel a tinge of excitement. He gently reached for her hands with his and gave them a squeeze as she slowly looked up at him. Even while crying, the girl still looked too cute for him.

"You jerk!" She sobbed, snapping him out of his thoughts. She began to hit him in the chest with both hands, now that he had let go. "You just wanted to see me cry, didn't you?" She continued to wail.

"Your expression throughout the movie was priceless, Mikan." He smirked.

"I hate you." She pouted, ready to send another punch, but with one swift movement of his arm, Natsume had got hold of her and pulled her even closer to his body. She watched as his hand wandered and studied through her palm, as if reading her lifeline. Mikan could feel her heartbeat through the tips of her fingers, and imagined that he could feel it as well. Natsume had smelled of evergreen and just a tinge of the detergent lingering on his shirt. He gazed down at her and stroked one side of her cheek, roaming his thumb around it.

"You know I would never hate you," He whispered, his breath hot on Mikan, and watched her reaction. Mikan shifted her gaze away from him for a while, before looking back at him. No matter how many times their eyes met, Natsume could get lost in her eyes. When her eyes slowly shut close, he took it as his cue and wasted no time in claiming her lips.

At first, it felt like nothing, until she started to react to him. When the feeling came back, Natsume felt the taste of seasons explode inside him. Her hair still smelled like Autumn-honey, yet the heat of their bodies pressed together was like the fiery sun in the middle of Summer. Everywhere she touched-his chest, his face cupped in her hands, her hands around his neck as she deepened his kiss-he felt flowers blooming at the traces of her touch, yet her smooth skin- her small back, her face- they were smooth and light as the gentle first-snow of Winter.

That night-they fell asleep with Mikan's head rested in his bare chest, hair sprawled over him.

* * *

He was standing in front of her doorway, repeatedly spamming her doorbell. He didn't care if the owner was at home or not, but something was definitely wrong with Mikan. Ever since she took a week's break to visit her parents elsewhere, she had not been quite the same anymore. She talked less, laughed less, and wanted to cuddle and make out less and less-until she stopped appearing wherever he was altogether. Every time he was concerned and confronted her about it, she would brush it off and say she was tired.

He had to figure out what was wrong with her.

The door jerked open and Natsume did not even wait for her to invite him in as he pushed through it. She wore that glum look on her face again, as if she was not surprised at his sudden visit.

Natsume had her backed up against the wall and placed his hands on her shoulders.

"Tell me what's wrong. Now." He spat.

"What's wrong?" She looked up at him, failing to hide the sadness in her eyes.

"Don't screw with me. You didn't reply my texts. You weren't on the bus. You didn't want to watch a movie last week. When I tried to kiss you 2 days ago, you pushed me away!" He could feel his emotions spiralling out of control. "If it's something I did, hurry and say it! You're driving me crazy!" He covered his eyes with his hand, supporting his head.

"You didn't do anything." She began, and Natsume met her gaze.

"Then what do you want?"

She brushed off his hands from her shoulder.

"Natsume…I want to break up with you."

Outside, the roar of thunder echoed throughout the neighbourhood.


	2. Chapter 2

Isn't this so exciting?

Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed this! Leave a review to tell me if you would like me to write a few more of these! : )

Bearbear =w=

* * *

The thunder outside roared and the sky circled with swirls of clouds. Natsume felt his heart scrunch up and for a moment, he felt his vision clouded-like the sky outside.

_I want to break up with you._

He felt his face slowly let out a small grin, though he could feel his arms trembling a little as he placed them onto her shoulders again.

"You're just testing me right? Come on, you're scaring me. You didn't mean-" He tried to joke.

Mikan once again pushed his hands off her shoulders abruptly, breaking off his speech. Her gaze met his firmly, and he noted that her eyes were not the same pair that he was used to seeing. Sure, it was brown, the same shade, but something was off. The sparkle was doused out with the rain. He felt his arms drop limply to his side. For a moment, they stood there in silence, as the nature outside continued its rampage. He didn't know what to say. They simply stared at each other.

"You're serious about this?" he found himself began.

"Do you need me to repeat myself? _I want to break up with you._" She hissed, this time stressing every single word in her sentence.

It is a wonder how just 7 words can make Natsume feel like his heart was shot and blown up into pieces. His eyes dropped to the floor, going through all sorts of weird things in his mind. _What did he do…How did it suddenly become like this…? Why…Why…Why?_

"Why?" He shakily began, meeting her eyes.

He watched as Mikan rolled her eyes at him and smirked. "Well, obviously I got bored of you." She said matter-of-factly and his eyebrow twitched with confusion.

"Bored…of me?" Did he hear her right? What was it that day that made her every word seem like poison to him? If this was a joke, she needed to stop now.

"Why are you making me repeat everything, Hyuuga?" She rolled her eyes again.

Hyuuga. His own name sounded foreign to him. She had just called her Hyuuga. She didn't even call him that the first time. He stood there, blank, unmoving, as his own name sank into his brain and all her words, her behaviour, her attitude. They stung his heart like needles-the rain outside continued to double in size and the wind joined in.

"Was it something I did?" He started, hoping she would not notice how much his fists were trembling.

"I just said, you bored the heck out of me, Hyuuga. I just got tired of your face and your lame jokes." She finally turned away from him, but Natsume pushed her back against the wall forcefully so that she yelped.

"Ouch!" She flinched as her back slammed back into the wall. "You're hurting-" She broke off, realising the hands on her shoulders were shaking and the crimson red eyes were clouded up-it was the first time she saw him like that. He was dying on the inside, and Mikan swallowed. The pain in his eyes was slowly eating her away too. But she must keep her act together.

"You're lying."

"I'm not." She snapped at him, struggling to break free, but the hold on her shoulders tightened. She could see his knuckles turning white. It was starting to hurt her.

"You're _fucking_ kidding me. Was it some other guy? Tell me. Fucking tell me now!" He hollered at her.

"Yes. It IS SOME OTHER GUY!" She yelled back into his face, and instantly felt his hold on her weaken. He broke. She needed to end this soon, or she would crumble together with him.

"But I..I thought," He stuttered.

"This is what I hate about you! You never listen to what I try to say! He wouldn't hurt me like you did!" She gripped her shoulders in pain, after effects of his outrage. "I hate you!" She continued screaming.

There was now fire in Natsume's eyes as he clenched his fist once more. "You're so arrogant and selfish, you never think about what I want-" And she shut up when he punched the wall beside her face. She could see the veins running through his arms and she wondered if they were at the brim of bursting.

"Are you trying to hit me? Do it then!" She screeched, not backing down. Once it started, it could only end.

When Natsume raised his arms once more, Mikan closed her eyes. She deserved to be hit. If it would ease his pain a little- but the punch never did come. She opened her eyes to see Natsume's figure stalking off and stumbling towards the entrance. "I'm sorry for anything I did. I hope you're happy." He didn't turn back to look at her, and she didn't need to see him to know that he was crying. She didn't look at him either, staring down at the floor.

"I could never hate you," She heard before the door to the house slammed shut.

Still gripping onto her shoulders, Mikan felt herself slide down until she was crouched on the floor. She was glad Natsume had already left. Because if he had stayed any longer, he would see her that way- sobbing her heart out and trembling on the floor, choked in her own tears, hands pulling at her hair as all she could do was listen to the rain outside wash out their relationship, their memories, his steps and his voice.

* * *

He was smiling one moment, holding her hand, laughing and cuddling, when suddenly all he saw was darkness, and she was gone. All he could hear were her screams and cries. His legs immediately took off-but he ended up nowhere. He could only call out to her as her voice grew distant, his consciousness faded-

And he fell back into reality, eyes fluttering open, on his bed. His house. His bed. Just him. Nobody else. No Mikan.

The rain had stopped. Outside, a blanket of clouds still blocked out the Sun.

He counted 1…2…3. 3 days since he had broken up with her. Or she had broken up with him. He still saw her everywhere he went-swinging her legs on his armchair, flipping over his books, on the couch with a movie, in his mind, in his dreams, in his heart. But then he would blink, and she would slowly dissolve away, only leaving behind memories.

For days, he had waited for a call…a text. A knock on the door. That she would come and tell him it was all a joke, a mistake. That she was ready to come back to him again. Instead, his phone only buzzed of missed calls from his friends and teachers-he hadn't been going to school- and then nothing else.

It's funny how all he saw was her even when she was no longer his.

Maybe it was the end.

* * *

She smiled as her hand browsed through the pile of watched movies on the floor. Her hands swept through them, lingering a bit longer on that one and last horror movie she had ever watched with him. She carefully picked it up, inspected it, then took it with her, down to her room and added it into her luggage of belongings.

Her hands traced through the places they were at. The dining table-the chair he always sat in. The balcony where she could see him coming and leaving. The couch that they cuddled together on. These are the things she could not bring away, the things only left behind as flickers of a memory, fragments of a wish unheard.

She returned to her room. Grabbing a pen and some lose sheets of paper, she began to write. She poured her feelings into it, like the day the rain poured on him as he left, and her tears. She wasn't a very good writer, but today, the words just spilled out and came to her as if she had known it all along.

It's funny how she always knew this day would come, but never expected it to be this difficult.

She wiped the last of her tears, and slipped the paper into an envelope. She stood up as she heard her guardian call her. Letter in one hand, her luggage dragged behind her-as she sealed off what may be the last of her memories.

She had hoped, that it didn't have end so soon.

* * *

He finally made it out of his room. 3 days of shutting himself in and barely eating anything tired him out. He made his way to the kitchen and gulped down a glass of water at one go. He slumped on the sofa, staring at the whirling ceiling fan above him. It was going to drizzle, he noted. As he turned his body slightly, he thought he saw someone just standing there, back facing the house, near the mailbox. But when he looked again, there was no one there. Just a gust of wind over the bare front yard.

* * *

She stopped in her tracks and faced the house in front of her. She had been in there a few times, and it was always lonely, grey and cold. But she thought it suited Natsume's personality, or shaped him in way. He should be in school by then, but she couldn't help but hope that just a tiny bit-she could see him-or even a part of him-maybe just his head- again, albeit from afar. There was no sign of life in his room, or any part of the house. She left her luggage out on the lawn before moving forward silently to the mailbox. Natsume never checks them, she knew. She slipped the brown envelope into the mailbox and stood there, silently, just taking in the last of the view around her, the wind in her hair and her face.

She didn't turn back to look at the house once. Slowly but surely, she began to move forward, one step at a time. Leaving, with all the goodbyes hanging in her steps, his name dangling by her lips.

* * *

He blinked, eyes not leaving the mailbox. He remembered.

"_Hey Natsume. Don't you ever check your mailbox?"She tapped on the metal box a few times._

"_Why would I? Nothing comes out of it." He replied, opening it for her to take a look. Empty. "See?"_

"_Who knows? My parents send me funny mails sometimes. Maybe one day you'll get a secret pen pal!" Mikan just laughed._

"_I don't need any secret pen pals when I have you," He smirked._

"_Stop teasing me. Well, maybe one day I'll drop you something, since my Natsume is so lonely." She sheepishly grinned._

The leaves whirled around, crashing against the metal mailbox unusually. Such a small drizzle should not invite such big winds, he thought.

Anyway, no harm checking it, right?

* * *

Before he remembered what he was doing, he felt his own legs moving. The letter in one hand, his legs moving through the lawn, faster and faster. He didn't care if he was still in slippers-he just ran. Mindlessly, faster than the wind could carry his legs. He ran across roads, and arrived panting so heavily that he could barely talk.

"Mi…Mikan! Mikan! Are…are you…are you in there? Open..the door. Open…it. Please…I'm begging you…Open it…" He panted, banging on her door, just like he did the night they broke up.

Instead, her guardian opened the door. "Oh!" She exclaimed at the sight of him. "Are you alright?"

"Please…Please tell me where Mikan went."

"Mikan? She already left with all her things!" She frowned hard.

"When…When did she leave?"

"Just a few minutes ago! She should be waiting, or on the bus."

And he ran off once more, leaving a very puzzled lady at the door.

* * *

Mikan sat alone in the bus stop, hands held tightly to her luggage. She was wearing that same dress she wore when she had first seen Natsume. She was hoping that the bus would never come. She slowly stood up, reaching out her hand again to feel the raindrops dancing on her arm. Closing her eyes, she could only picture the day she had done the exact same thing, and when Natsume first talked to her. She could see his face, his smirk, his dark raven hair, and the way his eyebrows lifted when he was surprised. She kept picturing him and telling herself how he looked like, so that she wouldn't ever forget about how he looked. Every detail. She would remember as much about him as she could. She would bring their memories together, anywhere she goes.

Her eyes flipped open as a bus pulled into her sight. Waving for it to stop, she boarded the bus. What may be her last journey.

* * *

He could see her, just there, standing with her arms outstretched into the drizzle. He had caught up with her! He had! Just a few more roads to go, and he could reach her. He could touch and feel her. He could stop her and hold her back. His feet finally slowed down, now assured that she was still there and had not left yet. He was about to open his mouth to call out her name but a bus pulled up from the side and his view of her was blocked.

No.

No. No!

Natsume knew that that was the only bus that passes through the bus stop. He hadn't been too early. He was still too late in the end.

"Mikan!" He bolted down the streets once more. He kept yelling out her name as loud as he could, hoping she could hear him and stop. He could not just watch her leave like this. He had been just that close, THAT close to getting to her. But within minutes, all he could do was watch and run futilely after the bus that carried her away. Watch the gap between them getting wider and wider and his energy slipping away from him. He had just missed her. She was at his grasp-his fingertips. She was in sight, and wearing that white dress that first got him charmed to her, and never quite got over her. But she was gone the moment he thought he had caught her again. Mikan had slipped away as easily as she slipped into his mind every day.

He could only watch, as the bus went on without him. His legs could move no more, and he could bear to look no more. He let out a furious growl of helplessness as he sunk onto his knees and crouched onto the floor in agony. This had been a lot more painful than the night she broke up with him. It was hard to breathe-whether from the sprints or his heart had stopped functioning-he wasn't sure. After a while, he could only look up into the distance.

And he saw her once again.

* * *

She stood there, her hair wet from the rain and clinging to her face, watching him, with tears forming at the corners of her eyes. The bus driver had stopped when he heard some shouts from behind, and no matter how she had hardened herself to move on- she had hastily alighted the bus to see Natsume there.

Natsume rose to his feet slowly, still not believing the sight in front of him. Is that Mikan? Or just another illusion? The bus had stopped after all. He was afraid that this Mikan was going to vanish away at another wave of his hand, like magic. But no, Mikan had remained there. Natsume squinted his eyes in the rain to see that she was sobbing-her hands were wiping her face repeatedly.

With every last bit of energy, he ran forward. Dashed, and cried when their bodies slammed together in that familiar touch-and at once he felt all his energy come back. The warmth, the scent of her, the feeling of her body against his-he could not bear to let her go again. His hand found its way around her waist and he pulled her close, burying his face into her neck and hair, while she sobbed into his chest.

"You silly, stupid, moron." He muffled into her hair.

"I'm so sorry. I'm sorry, Natsume. I'm sorry." She choked out.

He broke away slowly from her, so that their foreheads were against each other, red eyes into hazel.

"Shh. You don't have to be sorry. I should be sorry. I was so stupid. I can't believe I never found out. I can't believe I let you experience this pain yourself. I can't believe I almost let you get away from me."

"You have to promise me you'll come back, alright?" He continued, his fingers moving up to caress her cheeks and wipe away the tears-or rain- on her face. Mikan merely sniffed and nodded at his words.

"You have to come back to me. You can't just leave me here, ok? You're the only one for me. Remember that. You can do this. I won't go anywhere while you're gone. I'll wait until you come back." He planted a kiss on her forehead.

"We did meet again in a rainy day after all. I'll always love you, you know that right? No matter where in this world you will be."

"I love you too. So much."

And then he stood there and watched until the bus travelled round the corner and down the road, until he was sure it was gone and he could no longer see it.

* * *

Natsume counted the droplets of rain sliding off the windows of the bus, staring into the drizzle just behind the glass. But he turned his gaze when someone called out to him. A brunette girl in a white dress. He smiled.

"Hey, can I sit next to you?" She slid into his arms.

* * *

_Dear Natsume,_

_I hope you're not sick after going home in that rain that day._

_By the time you read this letter, I don't know where I would be, or if I will even be in this world anymore. I left. I left this place, the house, and most importantly, I left you. Please don't come looking for me._

_I still remember that day you asked me why and what you have done that made me leave you. I'm sorry I lied to you, Natsume. It wasn't you. The problem can never be you, you know. You are too perfect for me. Your smile, your gentleness, your charm-I am very lucky to have met you. Too lucky, in fact, but luck will never run on forever. That's the way the world goes. _

_I'm sorry I lied to you. I didn't move to this place just because my parents wanted me to. I moved here because I was sick. I was never expected to live past the age of 10, but I did, and I paid the price. Until now, the illness might not have claimed my life yet, but my soul had been long taken by it. And I moved here because the hospital that I was admitted to is nearby. You know, the one near the library? I have not been going to the library at all, Natsume. I had to visit the hospital two or three times a week for them to check on me. That's why I stopped going to school, because I could never stay long for a lesson. It was draining and it made me hate my life taking all the tests knowing that the disease was maybe never going to come out of me. But you cheered me up all the time, Natsume. You were the only thing that happened in my life that made my illness worthwhile. When I was tired, you never said anything; you were just there, watching over me. Sometime during this, you became my soul. I'm sorry I had to hurt you this way, but I made up my mind that you deserved more than a sick girlfriend who was probably going to die before you graduate. I regret not making this decision earlier. If I had controlled myself more, if I had just held back a little in our relationship-I would not have to see you crying because of me. I would not have to shred your heart into pieces and try to keep mine together while I walked out of your life and left you in ruins. I'm sorry it had to end that way._

_Last month, when I said I went to visit my parents, I actually got admitted to the hospital. It seems like my illness was back in full force, after years of trying to keep it down to its minimum. I already knew it would come sooner or later, anyway. It was like a poison in me, slowly rotting my body until one day everything would just collapse at once. That day, the doctors came in and told me that they had just discovered a new cure-a new technological development that may be effective in curing me once and for all. But they also said that there was only a 30% chance of success, 30% chance that my condition does not improve-but worsen badly. The remaining 40% means that…I would not make it out of that surgery alive._

_I took the chances, even though it was a slim 30%, because you gave me hope, Natsume. When I was going to give up on myself, you came in and walked with me, so that I was not alone. You made me feel warm and safe. You entertained my silly requests and tried your best to make me laugh. I had really, truly enjoyed my time with you, even if it was short. I will never forget the day we met and shared that umbrella. You made me love rainy days, you made me love myself. You became the only thing I look forward to. _

_Do you know that once, my appointment at the doctors had ended early, so I sat there at the library bus stop, waiting for 3 hours just to bump into you on the bus?_

_Please do not cry, or feel sad. I do not want you to shed anymore tears for someone as unworthy as me. You can hate me-you should. I lied, wasted your time and then just left. All I want you to know is that you were my sunshine, Natsume. Thank you for being there all the time. Even with my next life, I could never make up for the things I had done to you. I'm incredibly selfish, but really-I had not regretted meeting you. You have the sweetest eyes I've ever seen. You will never know, and I can never put to words-how wonderful life seemed when you're in my world._

_I tried to say this to you many times, but you always seem to beat me to saying it. I love you, Natsume Hyuuga. I love you, and I'll always do, no matter where I might be. I hope we can meet again someday, and maybe a rainy one._

_Lots of Love,  
Mikan_

* * *

_**The End. **_

**Raindrops-A Gakuen Alice Fanfic.**


End file.
